Amid the fast-shifting political scenario in Maharashtra following the demise of NCP president and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash in Baramati, the NCP brass huddled together barely a day after his funeral, deciding to hand over the reins of the organisation to his wife Sunetra Pawar, who is currently a Rajya Sabha MP.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has made it clear that the BJP will stand by the NCP’s decision, both at the party level and in the government.
The strong sentiments in the NCP following the tragedy may have pushed the BJP and the NCP to work out a formal arrangement at the earliest to placate the emotionally charged followers of Ajit Dada.
The NCP camp has justified its decision to select Sunetra as its leader, saying that it is politically required amid the current crisis facing the party.
The BJP seems to be going all out to throw its weight behind the NCP’s move. This was also the message the BJP central leadership has sent to the state party leadership, sources said. Union Home Minister Amit Shah attended Ajit’s funeral in Baramati Thursday amid the ongoing Budget Session of Parliament, and stayed till the last rites were completed.
Ajit’s demise has renewed the buzz over a possible reunification of the NCP factions. However, the roles of Ajit’s uncle and NCP(SP) chief Sharad Pawar and his daughter Supriya Sule amid the NCP churn remain uncertain.
Former minister and NCP leader Anil Deshmukh said, “The Pawar family is still in mourning. Once the rites and rituals are completed in next two to three days, Sharad Pawar along with other family members will sit together and decide on organisational issues.”
However, Pawar has distanced himself from the developments relating to the NCP, stating that several decisions being reported were internal matters of the Ajit faction and not discussed with his party.
Addressing reporters on Saturday morning, Pawar clarified that discussions regarding the possible merger of the two NCP factions had been underway but now appear uncertain.
Pawar’s remarks indicated that the NCP leaders took the decision to anoint Sunetra as the leader of their legislature party to succeed Ajit as the Deputy CM without consulting the NCP (SP). Explaining the NCP’s move, a party leader said, “At this point we have to urgently deal with the leadership issue within our party. We cannot ignore the sentiments of people who looked upon Ajit Dada as their leader. Our collective decision to have Sunetra Pawar as Ajit’s successor is the best option that would be acceptable to everybody.”
Three NCP ministers made the point that “The move to get Sunetra take the helm of NCP quickly is to avoid complications that may arise during the merger process. Once we have a leader in our party, it gives greater authority to take forward the discussions related to possible merger and other aspects.”
Some NCP leaders feel that even if the merger is inevitable at any point, it should be “respectable” and not on the terms of the NCP (SP). An NCP section also suspects whether the Pawar faction would like to align with the BJP-led government in the state and at the Centre. A party leader pointed to the high drama after the hung verdict in the October 2019 Assembly polls, when Ajit joined hands with Fadnavis leading to their dawn swearing-in ceremony in Raj Bhavan. Shortly afterwards, Sharad Pawar had managed to bring Ajit back into the fold of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance, which later formed the government under then undivided Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray’s chief ministership.
Officially, the BJP has taken a decision not to entangle itself in the internal affairs of the NCP factions. The BJP is however keen to ensure that the NCP continues to remain a key constituent of the Mahayuti.
Fadnavis said in Nagpur Friday, “ The NCP leaders met me twice. Whatever decision NCP takes, we will support them. The BJP will stand by the NCP both at party level and government.”
In July 2023, when Ajit broke away from the undivided NCP to cross over to the NDA with a majority of his party legislators, the BJP was said to have “engineered” this split in the Sharad Pawar-led party. Now, when talks of merger have been doing the rounds with the process pushed by late Ajit, the BJP believes it would be appropriate not to meddle in their organisational matters.
A BJP functionary said: “The BJP’s alliance is with NCP. We will ensure both NCP and Ajit Pawar’s family are not left in the lurch. We will stand by them in this time of crisis. On the issue of reunion between two NCP factions and their power share, it would be best left to them to resolve these matters. As third party, BJP is not going to interfere in it.”